Change Makers in Restorative Justice

The Transformative Power of Lived Experience
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-041-08132-6
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 298 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm, Gewicht: 594 g

Reihe: Routledge Frontiers of Criminal Justice

This book examines non- state justice approaches to community safety and conflict transformation, focusing on a unique model of community-based restorative justice which emerged as part of the Northern Ireland peace process. The model includes former politically motivated prisoners as managers and practitioners of restorative justice processes, contrasting from designs which ordinarily include such individuals as participants.

The book uses ground-breaking insider ethnographic fieldwork andinterviews to explore two main aspects of this innovative model: first, the impact of ex-prisoner practitioners on restorative practice; and second, the impact of the practitioner role on ex-prisoner reentry. Although the organisation utilising this approach has received significant international attention for its contribution to Northern Ireland’s wider peacebuilding process, the specific impact of ex-prisoner practitioners on restorative practices has not been investigated. This book tells that story, demonstrating that ex-prisoner leadership has been crucial in transforming restorative justice—yielding robust practitioner skillsets and positionalities that enhance restorative dynamics, while also generating opportunities that improve reintegration and desistance. It concludes that lessons from Northern Ireland provide essential benefits for restorative justice systems, and, through a pilot study in the US, additionally suggests that lived experience models have the capacity to advance safety, peacebuilding, and social justice mechanisms in other contexts.

Change Makers in Restorative Justice will be of interest to academics working in criminology and peacebuilding contexts and will offer particular insight to those in the restorative justice field. Its findings will additionally be relevant to practitioners and policymakers due to its practical contribution towards improving justice and reentry praxis through lived experience.

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate and Undergraduate Advanced

Autoren/Hrsg.

Albert, Allely

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Kriminalsoziologie
• Rechtswissenschaften Strafrecht Kriminologie, Strafverfolgung

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Conceptualising Restorative Justice and Ex-Prisoner Participation  2. Ex-Prisoner Led Restorative Justice in Northern Ireland  3. Ex-Prisoner Led Restorative Justice and the Local Struggle for Legitimacy 4. Ex-Prisoner Leadership and the Micro-Dynamics of Restorative Justice – Part I Practitioner Skillsets  5. Ex-Prisoner Leadership and the Micro-Dynamics of Restorative Justice– Part II Practitioner Positionality  6. Ex-Prisoner Leadership and Reentry 7. Conclusion: Lessons from Northern Ireland

Über Autor(innen)

Allely Albert is Research Fellow at Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland. Her interests focus on informal security and justice practices, emphasising community-based approaches to safety and the role of lived experience in peacebuilding contexts.